Essential Life Skills for a Successful Launch and Transition to College

Colleges expect students to arrive on campus prepared to succeed but the truth is, many students are ill-equipped for the drastic lifestyle changes, not to mention tons of unstructured time. Many colleges now offer a "first year experience" intended to help students handle the stress of college-level life but often this effort is a case of too little, too late, often resulting in disaster. The best place for a student to learn solid adulting skills is at home, from their parents/guardians. As an Independent Educational Consultant, I have guided hundreds of teens over the past 12 years toward a great fit college and what I know for sure is that there are critical life skills that will either make or break a student's successful launch and transition to college.
Independence
· Can your student make a meal? Do laundry? Grocery shop? Balance a bank account? Order their prescriptions?
· Are they competent with and able to manage self-care tasks such as a healthy sleeping schedule, healthy food, and water intake, waking up, getting to class on time and medication management?
· Do they have a system for managing their schedule? Device, written calendar?
Coping Skills-Self-Advocacy
· Are they comfortable asking for help?
· Are they comfortable accepting help?
· Can they recognize when they are falling behind (in schoolwork, sleep, self-care)?
· Do they know how to locate support services?
· Are they comfortable saying "no"?
· How to they manage frustration? Disappointment? Failure?
· What do they do when they have a set-back?
· How do they keep from losing confidence?
· Do they have a clear understanding of best practices for safety?
Discipline
· Do they have a system for taking notes?
· Are they able to ignore distractions and focus on the task at hand? (I'm not sure many adults have this skill)
· Do they have a system for keeping track of projects, books, and papers?
· Do they have a system for scheduling and managing their time?
· Are they comfortable saying "no"? No to alcohol, weed, ditching class, questionable ethical standards?
We all want students to thrive in college and making sure they have basic life skills is critical to their success. Start the conversation now and keep it going. If you want to take a deeper dive, read How to College: What to Know Before You Go (and When You’re There) by Andrea Malkin Brenner, PhD


